BLURB:The Owens sisters confront the challenges of life and love in this bewitching novel from New York Times bestselling author Alice Hoffman.

For
more than two hundred years, the Owens women have been blamed for
everything that has gone wrong in their Massachusetts town. Gillian and
Sally have endured that fate as well: as children, the sisters were
forever outsiders, taunted, talked about, pointed at. Their elderly
aunts almost seemed to encourage the whispers of witchery, with their
musty house and their exotic concoctions and their crowd of black cats.
But all Gillian and Sally wanted was to escape.

One will do so by marrying, the other by running away. But the bonds they share will bring them back—almost as if by magic...

EXPECTATIONS: I have seen the movie for this book, many many many years ago. The movie is one of my favorites, it has a lot of actors I like (Sandra and Nicole! Love!). It's cute and warm, and witch-y and my spirit just calls to it! So going into the book, I expected fireworks and my mind being blown. Did it happen? - No. But did I still love the book - Yes!

THE WORLD: The world is basically the one we live in. The plot takes place is USA, Massachusetts, in a town where Magnolia Street is walked past by everyone, because every is scared of the Owen's House! Honestly, I think that's what makes this so great, because you could be living next to a witch, or have a house in your town that you walk past really fast and don't turn your head! You can relate so easy.

CHARACTERS:Out main characters is the Owen's sisters - Sally and Gillian. She is calm, she can be trusted, she is the adult in the Owen's house. Gillian is wild, and beautiful, and a day dreamer and can make anyone turn their heads to her! Two sisters different as day and night (that's what their aunts call them in the book). They become orphans at a very young age and has to move in with their aunts, two old biddies that the town calls witches. Honestly, I liked the aunts far more then they were written to be I think. If only I could have aunts like that. We actually see Sally and Gillian grow up. So Sally is a mom and Gillian is just out of her third marriage. Speaking about the sisters, I have to say even though I liked Sally more, I still found her just boring at times. It was like she was scared of everything all the time. I mean there is scared and nervous and there is full on paranoid! But I did like her. She loved her kids, she loves her sister, even the aunts. She was the mom, the one who took care of things and had a wonderfully, deep soul. Gillian, was written to be a floozy. Going from guy to guy, getting in trouble, but I enjoyed her too. She did cross some lines, but all in good heart I think. I liked her still. The very different sister due, made a perfect combination!In the book Sally's daughters are teenagers, I won't give you away what's the twist, but they are different than the movie). I have to say, I only started really liking them by the end of the book. I liked Officer Gary a lot, he was a really great character. Jimmy was written very well. And just in all honesty, there are numerous characters, maybe some times too many for me, but the book gets only richer from it!Also the Magnolia House! The way it's written and describes I felt, like it's alive! I so want to go there!

ROMANCE:We have some romance in this book. All the Owen's women have romances in this book. Some bigger, other's smaller but one huge big romance is the love for the family. I mean they fight, they yell. but at the end of the day, they still cannot live without each other!

GOOD: The word love, does not contain the emotion I feel to this good and the way it gives you these little tips on what to do if you have been hexed, what to do if you see a blood moon, plant this at the start of your garden, do that if you want to get rich and find love. I mean the little practical magic things this book provides it's breathtaking. I love it, I adore it! It turned me into a witch!I also like that this book is very quotable. There some beautiful quotations.

BAD: It was at times, a little slow.

OVERALL:Once again I will repeat myself! Word love does not explain it. This book has my soul, it has my mind and it made a witch out of me. I have to say....I like it. I leave with some practical magic: